A 12-year-old Texas girl tragically died after her mother and stepfather allegedly failed to seek necessary medical attention for her life-threatening injuries, authorities reported on Wednesday, August 14.
According to a statement from the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office, the young girl, identified as Miranda Sipps, was a cheerleader at Jourdanton Jr. High School. She passed away on Monday, August 12, just days before her 13th birthday.
An investigation by the sheriff’s office’s Criminal Investigation Division revealed that Miranda sustained severe injuries on Thursday, August 8, four days before her death. Despite the seriousness of her condition, her parents reportedly did not seek medical assistance, even as she became mentally and physically incapacitated.
“The investigation revealed the parents failed to seek medical assistance for the girl, even though she was mentally and physically incapacitated and non-responsive. It appears the mother finally called 9-1-1 when the girl went into respiratory distress,” the sheriff’s office stated.
During a news conference, Sheriff David Soward explained that the parents attempted to care for Miranda at home, despite her being “primarily unconscious.” They reportedly tried various remedies, including attempting to feed her a smoothie with vitamins. “Of course, somebody that’s unconscious, that’s hard to do,” Soward noted, , according to My San Antonio.
Soward suggested that the parents believed they could nurse Miranda back to health on their own and were likely concerned about the attention that would arise if her injuries became known. He did not provide specific details about how Miranda was injured but mentioned that she showed slight signs of life when authorities arrived.
The girl’s mother, Denise Balbaneda, 36, and stepfather, Gerald Gonzales, 40, both of Christine, Texas, were arrested on August 13 and charged with injury to a child causing serious bodily injury by omission, a first-degree felony.
The sheriff’s office stated that after Balbaneda finally called 9-1-1, she was intercepted by authorities while en route to the hospital. Miranda was then transported by EMS to Methodist Hospital in Atascosa, where medical staff made every effort to save her. Unfortunately, despite their efforts, she was pronounced dead at 9:55 p.m. local time. The investigation into Miranda’s death is ongoing, and the final autopsy report is pending, according to the sheriff’s office.